


Splatoon: Fresh Start

by Loveshock, LPSvsS



Category: Splatoon
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-12
Updated: 2018-12-29
Packaged: 2019-09-29 17:46:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17207999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Loveshock/pseuds/Loveshock, https://archiveofourown.org/users/LPSvsS/pseuds/LPSvsS
Summary: A semi re-write of Splatoon (game) canon. A group of five squid-kids meet up to start battling as a team together, but when brought together, one of them can't help but notice the ghosts following another. And when the two clash in the Deepsea Metro, the past comes back to haunt once again...





	1. Beginnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story was originally posted on Fanfiction.net! I'm just posting here for catch-up. Enjoy.

Atti was a somewhat tall boy with long tentacles. He was somewhat of a mess, with a worn-out White Inky Rider jacket, some white slip-ons, and a pair of headphones around his neck, a gift he claims was from Marina herself. Despite being new to Inkopolis, he had a soft spot for the Inklings’ battle system. He’d always wanted to really participate in a big-scale tournament with some teammates, but he didn’t have enough friends to form a team and there was no tournament dedicated to those who weren’t skilled enough to chill with the big guys.

Which is why he looked in awe at the poster in front of him. Stuck on a board outside the Shoal, it had caught his eye from across the whole Inkopolis Square, which was an impressive feat considering how cluttered the square usually is, but the words on the poster were exactly what he was looking for.

The poster read, “The Fresh Start Cup is starting in a week! Registrations close this Friday! Perfect for beginner and inexperienced teams!”

Beginning and inexperienced teams, huh? These were exactly the words he had in his mind. This was just what he wanted; a competitive environment without the pressure...it was all very appealing. He quickly posted his own information - ranks, contact info - on the scouting board, where his name would be visible to anyone who was looking for teammates.

Within just a day of posting, he received a message from someone named Ika.

“Hi, I saw you were looking for a team to join,” Ika said. “I’m looking to start a team and I’ve only got one other player at the moment.”

Atti enthusiastically agreed. As a suggestion, he gave Ika the contact details of his own best friend, Tee, who had also been looking to join a team. Ika politely rejected Tee, due to the team being full. Within just a few short hours after that, Atti was introduced to Ari and Ben through group chat, who had also been looking to join the team.

“We need a captain,” Ika said.

“I’ll do it,” Atti volunteered. Leading a group was nothing he hadn’t done before, so leading a team? That’s nothing. As everyone got talked about their ranks and levels, and what their battle strengths were, Ari asked a very good question.

“What should our team name be?” he asked.

There was a quick moment of silence. “I have an idea, but I’m not sure what the response will be,” Atti chimed in, hesitantly. “I call it...SquidCubed. I even have some logo sketches drawn up.” He sent some of his logo ideas to the group, who agreed that it was a good idea.

“That’s settled, then. We should have a team all set,” Ika messaged.

Unfortunately for the team but luckily for Atti, Ben suddenly and abruptly dropped out, leaving SquidCubed with just three players. Atti quickly brought up the idea of adding Tee to the team again, and without much of a choice, the three agreed to add him on.

A few days passed by. The team had practiced some turf wars together, and started to get to know each other a bit. Two days before the tournament, Ika brought up an issue.

“I’m going to be a little late for the tournament start,” she said. “We’re gonna need to find a sub.”

“I think I’ve got an idea,” Atti piped up once more. “Let me ask her if she’d be interested.” He then sought out to find an acquaintance he met long ago. He’d never bothered to really speak with her, but he knew of her passion for battles and thought she’d be a good fit.

“Would you be interested in joining a team?” he messaged her. “Not that you want to, but I figured I’d offer you the invite.”

“Yeah, sure, I’ll join,” she told him. “I’m Rank X in everything but I’m not sure if you really care about ranks.”

“You’re higher-ranked than all of us...” he replied, with a tinge of defeat and jealousy. “But that’s fine. We’d love to have you.”

And with that, SquidCubed had added their last team member. After some formal introductions between players, SquidCubed had their player roster locked in for their first Fresh Start Cup.

The tournament came and went. Placing squarely in the middle of the rankings, SquidCubed considered their first entry a success. But with the bond between the group starting to strengthen, Atti couldn’t help but notice something was off with someone...


	2. Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a bit rushed, so I could put it out in time for one of my friends' birthday. Happy birthday, Valeria!

== _Two years ago..._ ==

“Valor!” called Cierra. “Octoling right behind you!”

“Got it!” Valor cried back. With a quick turn, she held her Splattershot tight and focused on the enemy approaching. _Stay calm,_ she thought. _Ready...fire!_ In just a quick press of the trigger and a few blots of ink later, the Octoling in front of her fizzled away.

“Good job you two!” Agent 2 chimed in, over the radio. “Now just keep sharp. You never know how much backup the Octarians could call in.”

“Got it,” Cierra replied. “We’ve almost got the Zapfish, we’ll be out of here in a flash.”

“You two are working wonders,” Agent 2 followed up. “You two work really great together, you know that?”

Valor blushed a bit, and Cierra let out a light chuckle. “Yeah, you’re right.” Cierra glanced over at her ink-covered partner, and smiled wide. Valor lifted her aviators and gave back a quick wink.

After taking a few more Octolings down, the pair approached the Zapfish.

“That was a workout,” Valor commented, wiping her shades clean of all the ink.

“You can say that again,” Cierra replied. “But I haven’t had fun like that in a while.”

“Yeah, me neither.” The two shared a moment of quiet, letting their thoughts simmer between themselves, before Cierra stopped.

“Thank you, Valor,” she said, softly. Valor stopped and turned around to meet eyes with her other half. “Thank you...for all of this.”

Valor, at a loss for words, simply smiled, and embraced her companion tightly.

“I love you, Valor.”

“I love you too,” she replied, her voice quivering. After about fifteen seconds they broke the hug, and Valor took her sunglasses off and cleared them up yet again, this time of the fog.

“Let’s get that Zapfish and head out of here. Don’t wanna spend too much time in here before we’ve got company.”

Valor pointed her weapon at the bubble surrounding the Zapfish and fired away. In just a few seconds the bubble had broken, and her partner had grabbed ahold of the Zapfish.

“We’ve got it,” Valor said into the radio. “We’re headed back now.”

“See you in a flash!” Agent 1 replied.

 _==Back in Octo Valley_...==

“You’re making great progress, you two,” Agent 2 remarked. “Why don’t you take a bit of a break?”

“No, no, let’s keep working at this, Inkopolis is in our hands,” Valor replied wearily. “We can’t just let the Great Zapfish be hiding away while we go off and fuck around.”

“Come oooon, you guys are no fun,” Agent 1 whined. “We’ll take care of getting some Zapfish while you’re gone. Just go chill!”

“They make a good point, honestly,” Cierra replied. “Saving Inkopolis is good and all but even heroes need a break. Let’s take some time off, even if it isn’t long. We already don’t get enough sleep as it is.”

Valor pouted and readjusted her shades. “Fine. We’ll take a break. Just know that I’m not happy about it.” While she felt guilty for leaving Agents 1 and 2 to do the work, secretly she was happy to get some relaxing one-on-one time with Cierra.

“Let’s get going, Valor,” Cierra nudged her partner’s arm.

“Y-yeah, alright,” she replied. She reached for the hand of the Inkling next to her, not expecting the hand to take ahold. She felt the warmth of Cierra’s palm rush through her body, causing Valor to blush evidently. They strolled out, headed back towards Inkopolis Plaza.

“Those two are so cute,” Agent 1 whispered.

“Yeah. They’re perfect for each other,” Agent 2 replied just as quietly.

Valor and Cierra started to plan their short and rare break with each other.

“What should we do?” inquired Valor, still shaking with nervousness with her hand in Cierra’s.

“Let’s look at the stores, there’s gotta be something cool in stock. Oh, I know! Let’s stop by Ammo Knights, and see what kinds of new weapons they’ve got.”

Valor sighed. “Do we have to listen to Sheldon nerd out over _another_ Splattershot?”

Cierra let out a laugh. “Let’s entertain him. And besides, I’m looking for something new to try.”

Valor was slightly disappointed - the last thing she wanted to hear was Sheldon start rambling about weapons, but the time was spent with Cierra so she didn’t care as much.

The girls finally made it to the Plaza. The sun was setting, painting a bright orange canvas decorated by the tall Inkopolis Tower. The Plaza was quiet, it was just warm enough, and a light breeze was blowing.

“Let’s...let’s sit down for a second,” Valor suggested.

“Yeah, sure.”

The two sat down on a bench nearby.

“What a lovely night,” Valor commented, taking off her shades to reveal her gleaming red eyes.

“This couldn’t be more perfect, could it?”

Valor thought for a second. Sure, the Great Zapfish was missing. Yeah, she spent her life on a battlefield. But...she had everything she wanted.

“There couldn’t be anything more perfect than this,” Valor said softly. Her hand still clamped in Cierra’s, she laid her head on her other’s shoulder.

“Please...never go away,” she said. “I can’t lose you...”

Cierra put her hand on the head of her partner. “I’ll always be here. Whenever you need me, wherever you are. I’ll be with you. I promise.”

Valor’s eyes started to well up before letting the tears flow.

“I...I love...you, Ci...Cierra,” she mumbled between sobs.

Cierra smiled and blushed. She let Valor’s hand free, and then wrapped her arms around the crying Inkling beside her.

“I love you too, Valor. I love you so much.” She leaned in and pecked Valor on the cheek.

Valor kept crying into the arm of her companion, as Cierra held her ever so tighter. They stayed on the bench for twenty minutes, before Valor suddenly piped up.

“Ammo Knights closes soon!” she exclaimed, randomly. She broke out of Cierra’s arm and hopped up. “Let’s head there now before it’s too late!”

“Oh shit, you’re right! Let’s go!”

The two made a dash to Ammo Knights.

The door creaked open, and the two Inklings walked in the door.

“Welcome to Ammo Knights!” Sheldon greeted. “We’ve got a load of new weapons in stock. Let me tell you about some of them!”

Cierra listened intently to Sheldon’s rambling, while Valor tuned out. She looked around the store, and her eyes fixated on the Tentatek Splattershot. It wasn’t all that expensive, but she had little cash; she hadn’t had much time to fight in turf wars since she was too busy out trying to help find the Great Zapfish so the weapon was just out of her reach. She had spent her cash on the shades and some other outfits, she wasn’t too worried about her gun of choice. But the Tentatek...her eyes were set on it.

Valor walked away from the gun, knowing she couldn’t afford it; not if she wanted to eat anything that week, anyway. She looked around the store, and there were all sorts of interesting weapons, but none had her eye as much as the Splattershot.

“Nothing new worth picking up,” Cierra told Valor, her voice letting off slight notes of disappointment. “Let’s head out.”

“Alright, that’s fine,” Valor replied, happy to leave the shop at this point.

They walked outside, but on their way out of the store, Cierra stopped spontaneously.

“Shit! I forgot something inside! Be right back, stay right here. Wait for me!”

Valor was confused, but she watched as Cierra darted back inside Ammo Knights. Meanwhile, Valor looked down at her phone, just to pass the time.

Cierra burst into the store, frantically searching.

_Where was that one that she was looking at...where was it...a-ha! There it is!_

She rushed and grabbed a Tentatek Splattershot off the shelves. She glanced outside, Valor still being totally oblivious to the whirlwind being created just behind her. Cierra quickly grabbed the gun, checked out, and bolted out of the store.

“I...I got it,” she panted. She gave Valor a bag.

“What’s this?” she asked, opening the bag.

Inside, a shiny new Tentatek Splattershot, just waiting for her.

“You...you remembered...!” Valor’s eyes lit a glowing red.

“Of course I did. Happy birthday, Valor.”

Valor tackled Cierra into the ground in a hug.

“I love you, Cierra. I love you so much...thank you, thank you!”

Cierra laughed. “I love you too, Valor.”

 


	3. Sleepover

== _ Two years ago... _ ==

The two Inklings walked back towards the entryway to Octo Valley, where Agents 1 and 2 were waiting for them.

“That’s the last of the Zapfish!” Valor excitedly screamed. “We got em! We did it! We did it!”

Cierra smiled, and shook her head. “We’ve still got the Great Zapfish to worry about, you know.”

The excitement out of Valor’s face drained. “Yeah...you’re right.”

“We don’t know where it is yet, though,” Agent 2 said, matter-of-factly. “We’re gonna need some time to locate it. We’ve got a lead on where it may be hiding, though.”  
“Just give us a few days. Why don’t you two lovebi---I mean, heroes go out and take a vacation? We’ll let you know as soon as we know where the Great Zapfish is!” Agent 1 cheerfully exclaimed.

Valor let out a sigh of relief. She and Cierra hadn’t gotten a break since her birthday a month and a half prior, and she was dying to spend some time with her girlfriend.

“Works for me,” Cierra commented. “I need some sleep...I haven’t gotten much in a few days...”

“Oh come on, do you  _ have _ to sleep?” Valor whined. “We’ve got so much to do...”

Cierra shook her head. “No, Valor. We need rest. Both of us. You should get some sleep the same.” She patted her partner on the head, as Valor adjusted her aviators once more.

“Hey, I got something for you two,” Agent 2 said. “But you guys gotta promise that you’ll take the first few days to rest.”

Out of intrigue, they both agreed.

“Good. Now, here you go. Don’t tell anyone where you got em, deal?” Agent 2 extended two slips of paper to the two girls.

“Are these what I think...”

“Could those be...”

“Squid Sisters VIP tickets?!” they shouted in unison, in total shock.

“Get some rest the next few days, then go all out! Just...don’t overexhaust yourself,” Agent 1 chimed in, the excitement in her voice waivering towards the end of her sentence.

“Thank you guys,” Valor said, her face filled with color and joy.

“You’re welcome,” Agent 2 responded. “Thank you for helping us.”

“It’s for Inkopolis,” Cierra said. “Don’t sweat it.”

“Now, go on. Get some well-deserved sleep.”  
“We will.”  
And with that, Cierra and Valor walked out of Octo Valley and back to Inkopolis Plaza.

“You go home and get some rest, Valor,” Cierra told her partner. “You need it just as much as I do.”

“I don’t wanna rest,” Valor complained. “I wanna talk and be with you.”

Cierra blushed a bit, and then grabbed Valor’s hand. “I’ll make you a compromise. You can come to my place and crash there with me. Deal?”

Valor thought about the offer for a second. Head over to Cierra’s house and sleep there? With her? The offer was enticing enough. Even if they weren’t talking, she could at least be in the presence of her beloved one...

“Fine,” she relented.

“Yay!” Cierra cheered.

== _ An hour later... _ ==

“My place is a mess...” Cierra lamented. “I hope you can look past that.”

“It’s fine, mine’s worse,” Valor joked.

The house was fairly tiny, with just a few rooms. There was the living room, where they were standing now; there was the small kitchen attached to the living room, which was fitted with a microwave oven and a small stovetop, alongside a seemingly miniscule dishwasher and sink. On the other side of the living room was a hallway that led to a bathroom, and Cierra’s bedroom. All over the floors and chairs and tables were stacks of various knick-knacks, ranging from clothing to weapons to papers and phone chargers.

Cierra blushed. Valor stared at the Inkling girl in front of her some more. Long tentacles, down to her chest, a pair of glasses, a maroon Zekko hoodie, and some leather red boots, the Punk Cherries. This girl in front of her...precious. A treasure she would hold dear forever.

“You hungry, Valor?” Cierra asked, searching through her pantry in her cramped kitchen.

“No, not really,” Valor shook her head.

Cierra sighed and pulled out a bag of chips. “Do you ever eat?”

“I’m perfectly fine!” a pouty Valor yelled back. “Don’t worry about me...”

Valor plopped herself on the couch, avoiding the miscellaneous trinkets on the floor, including some empty Splat Bomb shells and a Splat Roller missing the actual roller.

“Give me like five minutes to set up a spot for you,” Cierra told her, as she walked away into another room, the sound of a closet door opening following shortly after.

Valor looked around from the couch. The walls were quite bare, with the only thing lining it an old faded Squid Sisters poster and a small photo strip by the door to Cierra’s room. She got up and walked closer to the photo strip, to find two-year-old pictures of her and Cierra by the Battle Dojo. Valor smiled faintly. Three years ago, when they had first met during their human history class... She started singing a song under her breath, one that she had learned while studying the ancient cultures of the humans.

“Hold me close and hold me fast, the magic spell you cast...”

“I got everything,” Cierra exclaimed, startling Valor. She quickly stopped singing and instinctively backed away from the photos.

‘ “Uwa~!” she jumped. “You scared me, holy shit...”

Cierra chuckled. She put a stack of blankets and pillows down on the couch, and then walked into her room. After a few brief moments, she waved towards Valor to come on in, who was still daydreaming at the photo strip.

“Valor. Come on. It’s time to rest now,” she said sweetly. Valor snapped herself out of her trance, and walked in. Cierra pointed to a spot on the floor that had some blankets and pillows set up in a sort of poor squid’s bed, and Valor happily flung herself onto the ground and sighed.

“It’s almost over,” she exhaled deeply. “It’s almost time for this to be all over, when we can go back to living our normal lives...”

Her partner looked at her, and sighed back. “I don’t know. I mean, I’m getting tired too, but...hey, it’s quality time spent with you, I suppose. It could be worse, we could be split up and in college or something.”

Valor shrugged. “Yeah, I guess...”

“Let’s get some rest now. We’ve got a concert to go to in a few days and we’re both exhausted.”

Valor silently agreed, and laid her head down, closing her eyes. Cierra watched as the girl below her quietly drifted off, before letting herself zone out as well.

Two hours later, Valor woke up in a total panic.

“C-C-C...” she stuttered.

Cierra stirred, and looked over, she opened one eye and noticed the frantic Valor, eyes wide open with tears and sweat rolling down her face.

“Valor, what’s wrong?”

“C-C...Cierra...don’t go...”

Cierra, confused and concerned, got out of her bed and onto the floor with her companion. She leaned in for a hug, but Valor quickly pulled away.

“No...” she cried. “Stay...stay away...I’m only going...to make things worse...”

Cierra, now even more worried, took a deep breath out. “What’s wrong, Valor?”

Valor sat, distraught and silent. Not a word fell out of her mouth.

Cierra shook her head. “It’s fine, Valor. I’m here for you. I don’t know what’s going on, but...I’m not going anywhere, I promise you. I will always be right here, by your side. Forever.” She then forced her hug upon Valor, who fought back for a few seconds before finally accepting her fate. She wept into the arms of the girl who embraced her, as Cierra once again resorted to petting the girl’s head, as the breathing of her significant other calmed down once more. Shortly after, Valor closed her eyes and dreamt off again, this time within the cold warm arms of the one she loved most.

“I love you, Valor. Please...get some rest.” She closed her own eyes, and laid her head on Valor’s, as she let her soul fly away to the land of dreams.

== _ The next day... _ ==

Valor stretched, as she let out a large yawn.

“Good morning, sleepyhead~,” Cierra said playfully, peeking in through the door. “I was waiting for you to wake up.”

“What...what time is it?” Valor asked, rubbing her eyes.

“10:30,” her partner responded.

“Wow, that’s...that’s la--” Valor stopped, before a strange look overtook her face.

“What’s wrong?” Cierra asked.

Valor, her face red and flustered, shouted back. “Where are your pants?! Put those back on!”

Cierra, almost instinctively, looked down, where her own legs were bare, leaving nothing but her panties.

“Oh, come on, we’re both girls,” she looked down, teasingly.

“Put! Them! On!” Valor yelled back, her face growing redder and redder.

“Fine,” she relented, “But I’m gonna be grumpy about it.”

“That’s good enough for me.”

Cierra grabbed her pants off of the floor and slipped them back on. “Hurry up and get ready yourself, breakfast is almost ready.”

Valor got up and out of her strange sleeping arrangement. Before stepping foot outside of the room she reflexively looked down to make sure Cierra hadn’t taken off her pants in the middle of the night - just to be safe. She looked around and found Cierra had carefully put her aviators and her shoes away in the closet. She let off a small laugh to herself, and walked out into the kitchen, where Cierra was preparing a simple breakfast of eggs and toast.

“It’s all I can really afford, I’m sorry...” she said, with a tinge of sadness in her voice.

“No, it’s fine! It’s fine. You shouldn’t have bought me the Splattershot...”

Cierra shook her head, a look of confidence replacing the disappointment. “No, I was going to anyway! It was your birthday after all.”

“But...but...you didn’t need to...”

“ _ But _ I love you, and I’m going to anyway.”

Valor pouted, before launching herself towards the Inkling next to her and wrapping herself around her.

“I love you too,” she said, the sadness on her face morphing into joy.

“Come on, now. The food’s gonna get cold.”

The two girls sat down at the small table on the edge of the kitchen, surrounded by broken guns and cracked ink tanks.

As the two sat over breakfast, they began to discuss their strategy for the day.

“What should we do today?” Valor asked. “We could go shopping... _ ooh _ , or fight in some turf wars! Or we could head to the Battle Dojo and--”

Cierra put her hand on Valor’s to calm her down, and shook her head. “No, Agents 1 and 2 said we had to rest! We’re not leaving this house.” Valor pouted once again, and went back to eating her toast. Cierra continued. “I do have one of these old things the humans used to use for entertainment, though. We could always play with that.”

Valor, who had a strange interest in ancient human culture, was intrigued. She perked her head up. “Whatcha got?”

“Finish up breakfast, I’ll show you.”

The two girls finished up their food and cleaned up the kitchen. Shortly afterwards, Cierra led Valor to her closet.

“Where is it, where is it...a-ha! Here it is!” The girl pulled something out of the piles of hoodies lying on the floor in her only storage space.

“Woah...what is that thing?” Valor asked.

It was a glossy little box, something she had never seen before. It was black and plastic, with sharp edges, and on the front an oval-shaped slot. Below the slot was a little flap, and to the right of the flap were three little letters, etched in white - “Wii”.

“It’s an old games console from over 12,000 years ago,” she explained. “It’s got these cool little remotes that control the games and everything. I bought it off of Sheldon a while ago. Comes with some games and all the little accessories. I used to play it all the time, but then school took over and then, well...this happened.”

Valor looked at the box in amazement and interest. She played with all the little flaps and ports and buttons. Something about the thing engrossed her in a childlike state of curiosity.

“Can I...can I have that? I need it so we can, like...play it, Valor.”

Valor reluctantly handed the Wii over to Cierra, however within moments she had forgotten about the box itself and was now focused on what was seemingly the magic it held inside.

Cierra shuffled through her closet some more, getting hoodies all over the floor (and one on Valor’s face, as it got thrown). She pulled out a wad of gray cables, and a stack of white disc cases, alongside two black remotes.

“Pick out a game,” she said to Valor. “I’m gonna get this thing set up.” She adjusted her glasses, and then rotated the small TV screen she kept on the floor. As she began to set up the strange contraption, Valor looked through all the cases. It was in a language she didn’t quite know - English - but she eventually settled on one game with a white background, with a red and green dude on the front, both in overalls and holding floating steering wheels.

“Here, this work?” Valor asked.

“Mario Kart? Hell yeah, I’ll kick your ass.”

Valor, who was both intimidated yet confident, did not have a witty response for this. She’d...never played it, after all.

“Here, take a remote.”

Cierra put the disc in to the Wii, and walked her girlfriend through the controls. Cierra then set them up and picked her character - Funky Kong on the Flame Runner - and Valor picked hers, a cute little green dinosaur on a little dolphin-shaped bike. 

“You’re on, Cierra.”  
Cierra laughed, condescendingly. “You won’t even make it past 10th place.”

The two locked eyes, sparks flying between them.

“Let’s do this,” they both said in unison.

Hours passed. The two girls had finally started to get a little bored of the game.

“What time is it?” Valor asked.

“Are you too stupid to read a clock?” Cierra snapped, jokingly. “That’s the second time you’ve asked that today.”

Valor’s face turned red, before she let out a quiet “sorry”.

The hoodie-wearing squid laughed. “It’s all good. Anyways, it’s about 5:00. We should probably eat something. All that ass-kicking tired me out.”

“Hey! It’s not my fault all I ever got were green shells and bananas,” Valor whined.

Cierra chuckled. “I know, I know. I’m sorry, all good.”

They turned off the Wii and put it back in Cierra’s closet. They went back to the kitchen, and rummaged for whatever food they could find, before settling on frozen pizza.

They ate dinner and talked, and before they knew it, it was 7:00.

“It’s getting late,” Valor remarked.

“Hey, you read the clock for once!” her partner joked.

“Shut up, you!” The girls broke out into laughter.

“Let’s head to bed. We’ve gotta be rested for the concert tomorrow. We’re meeting the Squid Sisters after the show, after all, we want them to see us at our best!”

“But it’s only seven!” Valor complained.

“We rarely get to sleep like this. Let’s do it while we have the chance.”

Valor was disappointed, but agreed. “You’re right...I don’t want to leave a poor impression on the two most popular girls in all of Inkopolis.”

“Good. Let’s get to bed. I’ve got some spare pajamas you can use, so you can throw your current clothes in the wash.” Cierra dug out an oversized t-shirt and some fuzzy pajama pants from a drawer. “Put these on, I’ll throw your stuff in with the rest of it and in the morning we’ll just change back into it all.”

Valor nodded. She took off her FA-01 jacket, before pausing.

“Turn. Around,” she insisted.

“Fine,” Cierra huffed. Valor slipped off her pants and shirt quickly and efficiently, and then slid into the pajamas. “Can I turn around yet?”

“Yes,” she responded. “Where do you want these?”

“I’ll take em.” Cierra took off her glasses, threw off her own hoodie, then the pants and shirt (while Valor hid under her blanket), and then put it in a pile with Valor’s clothes and walked off to the bathroom, which housed a small but sufficient washing machine. She came walking back several minutes later, this time wearing pajamas herself.

“You can come out now, silly,” Cierra teased, peeling the blanket off of her sweetheart.

Valor looked up.

“You’re adorable, Valor.”

“No I’m not!”

“Yes you are, you adorable little bean.”

“....fine!” Valor blushed, and buried her face into her pillow.

Cierra smiled. “Hey. Get up here.”

The girl below was confused, but hesitantly got off of her floor-bed and onto the actual bed above her.

“Lay here. With me. All night.” Cierra rolled over to give Valor a bit of room, and within a minute the two Inklings were now side by side.

Valor wrapped her arms around her girlfriend.

“I love you so much...please never go away.”

Cierra let a few tears out, and then mirrored the embrace. “I’m never going anywhere. I said it before, and I’ll say it again. I love you, Valor. More than I could ever tell you.”

Valor pulled up the blanket and wrapped both of them in it. They closed their eyes, wrapped their arms tighter around each other, and fell into a state of unconscious bliss.

== _ The next day... _ ==

[[ _ Beep! Beep! Beep! _ ]]

Valor looked around her. She found herself awake, tight in Cierra’s arms - just like she had fallen asleep. She smiled, and gave the Inkling surrounding her a kiss on the cheek.

“Wake up, sleepyhead,” she spoke softly. “It’s time to get ready.”

Cierra slept on, undeterred.

“We gotta look good and be alive and awake, Cierra.”

Nothing.

“The concert starts in thirty minutes.”

The snoozing girl jolted up, her face full of life.

“WHAT?!”

Valor laughed. “I was kidding. We still got three hours. But no, really. We need to start getting ready. Our stuff’s not even in the dryer yet.”

Cierra climbed out of bed reluctantly, flustered. “Yeah, yeah, you’re right. I’ll go start drying the clothes, can you throw some toast in?”

“Yeah, sure.”

Cierra grabbed her glasses off of her nightstand and groggily walked to the bathroom, while her partner jumped out of bed, glanced down to make sure she was still wearing pants, and then walked to the kitchen merrily.

_ What a great night, _ she thought to herself.  _ I hope we get to do this again...that’s the best sleep I’ve ever had in my life.  _ She grabbed the bread out of the cupboard, and then threw four slices into the toaster. As she waited for the toast to finish, she daydreamt about her night with Cierra. Even if she was asleep for almost all of it, she remembered the warmth and comfort of the arms of her other. She yearned for it even more.

The toast popped up out of the toaster, startling Valor and snapping her out of her fantasies.

“Uwa~!”

“Uh...you okay? You kinda just spaced out, there.” Cierra grabbed some paper plates, and threw the toast down on them.

“Y-yeah, I’m fine! I’m fine,” Valor responded, her face red with embarrassment.

Cierra brought the two paper plates to the table, where she and Valor quickly gobbled them up. The two girls took turns taking showers, doing their tentacles, and making sure they were ready to go.

One hour remained until the concert, and the two were ready. Valor kept her same basic look. She donned her favorite shades, the 18K Aviators. To compliment, her trusty FA-01 Jacket, which she had held onto for years, to the point of all the branding starting to fade. For shoes, she wore her Strapping Whites, which were worn out but still in decent condition. She kept her light-blue tentacles down and behind her head.

Her partner was geared up with her usual, as well. A maroon Zekko hoodie, her glasses, and the Punk Cherry boots. Cierra kept her purple tentacles waved to the left side of her head. (She claimed that this hairstyle would be hot shit in two years, but Valor didn’t believe her.)

“Alright, we got everything? Tickets, cash, all that?” Valor asked.

Cierra checked her pockets and looked around. “Yep. That’s everything.”  
“Shall we get going, then?”

“Let’s go!”

The two girls excitedly hurried off to catch the train to the venue, just a few miles off from Inkopolis Plaza.

== _ Showtime! _ ==

The two Inklings found themselves in the front of the crowd, like true VIPs. They watched on, as their eyes were shining with the reflections of the lights on the stage. They felt the rush of the audience as the energy of Ink Me Up spread itself through the venue. They felt the strange excitement and tension of Now Or Never build up, and then crash down when they faded into the calmer City of Color. Marie left the stage for Bomb Rush Blush, as the venue soon become entranced in a sea of pink lights, and then they let the calm relief and melancholy of Tide Goes Out take over as the pink faded into green, and the atmosphere all around cooled down. Soon, there was quiet.

“One last song, you all know what it is!” Callie rallied.

“Hell yeah!” Marie cried.

“Oooh! This is the best song!” Cierra squealed. Valor smiled, and grabbed the hand of the girl next to her. Cierra, in slight shock, entangled her fingers with Valor’s as they prepared for the final song.

The Squid Sisters put the entire audience in a trance state with their heavenly melody, the Calamari Inkantation. The song faded out, as Callie and Marie said their good-byes and walked off stage. The two heroes stood side-by-side, on their faces a grin permanently glued.

“You two are set to head backstage,” said one of the security guards, approaching them.

“Thank you,” Valor said. She dragged Cierra along with her towards backstage, their hands still intertwined. In just a few moments, they were face to face with the legendary Squid Sisters.

“I’m such a big fan of you guys!” Cierra screamed.

“It’s an honor to meet you,” Valor added, calmly.

“We’re so glad you could make it!” Callie exclaimed, as cheerful as ever.

“So? You guys enjoy the show or what?” Marie said.

“It! Was! Awesome!” yelled the purple-tentacled Inkling. “All the lights were amazing and you guys did a great job singing and all your dance moves were spot on and--”

Valor had walked off, looking at something hiding in a case of studio equipment. “Are those...?”

Callie and Marie looked in shock.

“H-hey, don’t--!”

Valor picked up the black cones. “Aren’t these our headsets, Cierra?”

Cierra snapped out of her fangirlish rant. “H-huh? Oh, yeah. Those do look like our headsets.”

“Well...I guess the secret’s out, heh!” Callie said, with a nervous chuckle.

“Agent 2, reporting in,” Marie added.

“Should’ve known,” Valor commented with a smile. “I knew you two were just a little too familiar.”

Cierra had gone back to shrieking excitedly, and was seemingly beyond hope for calming down.

“Well, now that you’re here...we might as well tell you what we’ve found,” Callie said, pulling out a piece of paper covered in scribbles.

Valor gave Cierra a quick jab, and she quickly snapped right back to attention.

“We’ve found the Great Zapfish. It seems Octavio’s trying to protect it,” Marie reported. “We’ve got it’s exact coordinates. We need you two to be ready to go, ASAP. Get back into the game, girls.”

“Meet us back in Octo Valley tomorrow, 7:30 AM sharp.” Callie said. “We’ll get you two ready to go then. For now, here’s your gear...seeing as you already found it.” She walked over the the case of equipment and pulled out the rest of their suits.

“Get as much rest as possible,” Marie added. “You’ll need it.”

“Alright. Thank you, you guys. Great show, by the way,” Valor replied. She grabbed Cierra’s hand, and the two walked out of the venue.”

The two girls walked towards the train station.

“I can’t believe Agents 1 and 2 are the Squid Sisters!” Cierra exclaimed loudly. “This is so cool...!”

“Cierra, come on now. I know you’re excited. But I need you to focus. Tomorrow, we get the Great Zapfish back. We’ve got a busy day ahead of us, I need you to be in it with me.”

Reluctantly, the girl nodded. “Fiiine. I’ll head back to my place, you head back to yours. I’ll meet up with you in the morning.”

“But...I could just come over and sleep with you again, right?” Valor asked, a hopeful look in her eyes.

“Nah, you need the rest. I’m just a distraction. We’ll do it again sometime. I promise!”

And with that, Cierra got on the train back to her house.

“Alright, if you say so,” Valor said under her breath, as she waited for her train.


	4. Stars

Atti bolted around Ammo Knights, carefully inspecting the weapons lining the shelves. Ari, Ika, and Tee walked around Inkopolis, not too far outside. Valor was inside Ammo Knights, watching Atti investigate the selection. The Octoling stopped for a second, staring intently at a weapon. Valor walked over, curious.

_ Wait, is that...? _

Atti picked up the gun. “This looks cool,” he said. “Splat Bombs, Inkjet...this could work nicely...”

Valor stared intently.  _ That’s the same one that she... _

Atti looked at the price tag. Still inexperienced, he looked down sadly, being unable to afford it, despite its low cost. He walked out of the store, empty-handed. Valor adjusted her aviators, and went and grabbed the gun off the shelf. It was pocket change to her, nothing she couldn’t afford. She walked over to Sheldon, with the gun in hand, and quickly purchased it before chasing Atti, who had started catching up to the rest of the group.

“Hey, wait!” she yelled.

“Huh, what is it?” the boy responded, sounding dejected.

“Here,” Valor said, presenting it to him.

“What’s this?” he asked, opening the bag.

Inside, a shiny new Tentatek Splattershot, waiting for him.

Atti’s eyes lit a glowing yellow.

“Thank you!” he said, before lunging at Valor into a hug, nearly tackling her to the ground. Valor hugged back.

_ Just like you did for me...I miss you... _

Atti jumped out of the hug. “Come on, let’s go test it out!” He dashed to the Battle Lobby, eager to play with his new gun.

“Alright then,” Valor replied, smiling. “Wanna head into League? They’ve got Splat Zones running now.”

“Hell yeah! That’s my favorite!”

“Sweet,” Valor said, unzipping her worn-out FA-01 jacket, revealing an ink-stained white t-shirt. “Let’s do this.”

“Yo, what are you two up to?” Ika asked, as the other three approached them.

“About to hop into some League,” Atti told her. “Got some new toys I wanna play with.” He twirled the gun in his fingers.

“Can we join?” Ika asked, hope gleaming in her face.

“Yeah, sure, but we’ve got one Inkling too many.”

“I’ve gotta head out soon,” Tee added, “so you guys can play without me.”

“Alright then, it’s settled,” Atti declared. “Let’s do this!”

The group said farewell to Tee, as they went in and tackled the League.

== _ A few hours later...== _

The four walked out of the lobby, tired but satisfied.

“We did pretty good back there,” Ari commented.

“Yeah, that was fun!” Ika added.

“I love this thing,” Atti stated, looking at his Tentatek once more.

Valor smiled silently.

“Oh, look, the sun’s starting to set,” the Octoling pointed out. Ika and Ari looked over to the horizon, and Valor took off her aviators.

“Wow, that’s pretty...” Ika’s hand instinctively moved towards Ari’s, where it made contact. Ari turned directly to the girl. Ika stood there paralyzed, her hand still sticking out and a look of fear and embarrassment glued to her burning-red face.

“I-It’s n-n-not...!” she stuttered. “I-I didn’t...!”

Ari blushed, and then looked away silently. He smiled.

“You can start to see the stars,” he commented. “I can’t wait to visit them.”

By this point, Atti and Valor had walked away, leaving the two Inklings to each other. Ika somewhat recovered, but tinges of red remained on her face.

“You want to visit the stars?” Ika asked.

“Yeah. There’s so much more out there than Inkopolis. Some people even think that the flag the humans put on the moon when they first got there is still standing, and I want to see if that’s true.”

The Inkling girl looked at the orange sky in wonder. As she felt the air around her start to chill, and she moved closer to the boy next to her for warmth, and she gazed into the night sky.

“Wow...it is nice,” she remarked.

“I know, right?”  
“If you go...take me with you, alright?” she asked, looking at Ari, the red on her face intensifying.

“Sounds like a deal,” the boy replied. “I’ll take all of you to space, so we can all see the stars together.”

Ika’s face of hope quickly faded into disappointment. Yeah, seeing the stars would be nice, but she wanted to do it with Ari alone. 

_ So much for the romantic moment... _ she thought, before listening to Ari talk on and on about space and the stars.

As Ika and Ari watched the sky, Atti and Valor had walked off to the train, ready to go home.

“How are you doing, Valor? You looked sad back there.”

“It’s nothing, I’m fine,” she said, her voice quivering.

“I tend to doubt that,” Atti inquired further.

Valor stopped, before burying her face into Atti’s shoulder.

“No, everything is not okay! She just...disappeared, Atti! She just vanished...and I never got to say goodbye...” Valor started bawling. “I...miss her...”

Atti put his hand on her head, and rubbed. “It’s gonna be okay, Valor. I don’t know what happened, but it’s all going to be okay. I’m sure she misses you too.”

Valor continued to cry, as Atti put his arms around her.

“Cheer up, things will all work out in the end.”

Valor dried her eyes as her train approached. “Thank you, Atti. Good night, I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” She waved before getting on the train. Atti waved back with a wide smile.

Thirty minutes later, the girl found herself at home. She made herself a quick smoothie and downed it, before taking off her jacket and aviators and hopping into bed. She stared at the ceiling, wide awake, thinking about  _ her _ . She couldn’t help but turn her head to her wall. She started crying, with the only image in her mind the wall of her room, where she hung up the maroon Zekko hoodie she held onto for two years.


End file.
